The
whales have reached Puget Sound! The parade of northbound Eschrichtius
robustus appears to be in full swing. With 53 northbound whales
counted so far in March, observers for Oregon’s Whale
Watching Center are starting to see the first whales headed
north to the Arctic. But folks still
are awaiting the first returning whales in the waters of Kodiak,
Alaska.

Meanwhile, in California the Gray
Whales Count team has spotted a total of three northbound
moms and babies. Peak numbers
of northbound whales have been counted at both official
counting stations on the California coast, but no mothers/babies
yet for the ACS/Los Angeles post. And spring training is
in full swing for babies in the lagoons. Click on the yellow
arrows to see the latest news from our observation posts!

In
stormy seas, high winds, fog, clouds, rain or clear weather — the
whales are heading north! What’s it like for the volunteers who
spend long hours, watching and waiting to count passing whales? Would
you be able
to do it? Sure! Just take a few tips from ACS volunteer Mike Hawe. Learn
the whale watchers’ lingo:

Pretend
you're a whale watcher and fill in these blanks to call out the
whale spout you see viewed in the binoculars:
"BLOW! ____
degrees at ___ mil. The whale is ___ miles (____ kilometers) offshore."

After the turnaround, we look for pulses,
or surges in sightings as the newly-pregnant females, the males and the
juveniles of previous years head north. Then we look for the peak in
those numbers (before the new moms and babies begin heading north). In
California the peak week, on average, occurs anywhere from the end of
February to
the
end of March. The average peak day over all years has been on March
18.

Do you
think there's been a peak at LA? At Gray Whales Count near Santa
Barbara, CA?

Last
time we told you that major
Mexican TV network and its U.S. Hispanic network planned to use Television
to help gray whales. The results are in, and
it was a huge success! The effort raised over $3.5 million in Mexico
and the United States — SEVEN times the $500,000
goal! The donations will be used by members of the Laguna San Ignacio
Conservation Alliance to preserve the San Ignacio Lagoon, the last undeveloped
gray whale birthing site in the world. More... >>